At LANGUAGECERT, we uphold the highest standards in language assessment through a robust governance structure. The LANGUAGECERT System of Tests is supported by multiple layers of expert oversight, comprising language assessment professionals and academics. These dedicated experts work collaboratively to monitor, evaluate, and guide the performance and strategic direction of our examinations and services.
Board of Directors (BoD): Develops and assesses the overall strategy and direction of LANGUAGECERT, oversees the business and provides leadership and guidance.
- Dr Michael Milanovic, Chairman of the Board
- Graham Shaw, Deputy Chair
- Maury Shenk, Secretary
- Suzy Gunn, Member
- Marios Molfetas, Member
Advisory Council (AC): Offers advice for continuous improvement on LANGUAGECERT’s processes and procedures and scrutinises its regulatory compliance status.
- Roger Johnson, Chairman
- Nigel Pike, Member
- David Coniam, Member
- Marios Molfetas, Member
Management Team (MT): Ensures the development and global delivery of high-quality language qualifications, by partnering with world-class experts and prominent organisations, deploying state-of-the-art, innovative technologies.
- Marios Molfetas, Executive Director
- Nigel Pike, Special Advisor
- Suzy Gunn, Special Advisor
- Yiannis Papargyris, LAQD
- Leda Lampropoulou, Research Strategy
- Fraser Cargill, Partnership & Recruitment
- Henry Tolley, Global Sales Director
- Liam Vint, Product Marketing
Dr Michael Milanovic
Chairman of Board of Directors
Dr Michael Milanovic has been involved in language education and assessment since 1977. His personal expertise encompasses qualitative and quantitative research, strategic leadership, and the development of rigorous quality management systems. Michael’s extensive academic, practical, and managerial experience in his field is evident, as he has managed a wide range of projects related to operational issues, the development of new examinations and procedures, as well as research, in collaboration with ministries and universities around the world, the European Commission, and the Council of Europe. He started working in Cambridge English Language Assessment in 1989 and held the role of CEO from 2003 until 2014.
He was also involved with the development of the Common European Framework of Reference for Language Learning, Teaching and Assessment (CEFR) from its inception in the early 1990s and was a member of the Steering Group responsible for overseeing its development through the 1990s.
Since 2014, he has held a number of roles including Senior Advisor to the National Educational Examinations Authority (NEEA) in China, Visiting Professor with CRELLA, University of Bedfordshire, Trustee of the Bell Foundation, consultant with University of Cambridge’s Automated Language Teaching and Assessment Institute (ALTA), co-founder of English Language Intelligent Tutoring (ELiT), Advisor to the Malaysian Ministry of Education and member of the Scientific Committee for the ERASMUS+ OLS.
He has an M.A. in Applied Linguistics and a Ph.D. in the same field.
Graham Shaw
Member of BoD
Graham Shaw has experience as CFO and COO of a multi-national publishing company. He has served for 15 years as a board member. He has acted as the President and Managing Director of a US/UK reference publisher, and as a non-executive Director. Graham is specialised in Mergers and Acquisitions, restructuring, strategy and business development and contract negotiation
Maury Shenk
Secretary of BoD
Maury Shenk has been with PeopleCert since 2014. He has more than 20 years of experience as a lawyer, and more than 10 years of experience in private equity investments. He advises on technology law and international regulation. Maury is also General Counsel at Spring Capital, Founder and Managing Director of consulting firm Lily Innovation Advisors, and advisor to law firm Steptoe & Johnson (where he was formerly London managing partner).
He assists companies from the world’s largest to start-ups on transactions and regulation, and has broad experience in the law of electronic communications, information security, data protection, export controls, and economic sanctions.
Maury received an A.B. from Harvard College and a J.D. from Stanford Law School. A native English speaker, he also speaks Mandarin, Russian, French, German, Spanish, Italian, and Norwegian.
Suzy Gunn
Special Advisor
Suzy Gunn has been with PeopleCert since 2017. She has extensive experience in UK education, accreditation, government funding, audit, regulatory and risk compliance, with a proven track record of developing, implementing and maintaining process and systems to optimise company and people performance. She previously held the role of Awarding Organisation Responsible Officer for several years and regularly served as a powerful, influential and collective voice on qualification and apprenticeship development.
Suzy has spent many years serving on Commercial Boards and held a critical, strategic role as part of a highly successful multi-million-pound company sale and acquisition. She is dedicated to ensuring LANGUAGECERT’s design, delivery and award of qualifications is of high-quality and value, and is fully committed to the growth of the business on a global scale.
Marios Molfetas
Chief Languages Officer / Executive Director
Marios Molfetas holds a first degree in Physics, followed by an MSc in Electronic
Business Management. He served as Business Consultant and Business Development
Manager at the University of Warwick, prior to joining PeopleCert in 2009. Since then, he
has served as a Manager in the Marketing and Communications, and Business
Development Departments.
Marios holds the titles of Chief Languages Officer and Executive Director for
LANGUAGECERT. He has been driving the languages assessment development
programmes for PeopleCert since their inception. He is responsible for
LANGUAGECERT’s strategy, new qualifications development, partnerships and contract
management.
Roger Johnson
Chairman of Advisory Council
Roger Johnson has a degree in law, a Master's in English teaching from the University of Manchester, and an MA from Cambridge University. He is an educational assessment expert with broad experience of developing strategy and introducing process improvements in the risk-averse environment of high-stakes examinations.
Originally a teacher, trainer and examiner both in the UK and overseas, Roger worked for Cambridge English Language Assessment for 25 years in a wide range of roles. When he left Cambridge in 2017, he was Chief Operating Officer leading a team of 360 staff, covering assessment design and content, quality assurance and validation, as well as distribution channel management and back-office operations.
He has a particular interest in how developments in language teaching and testing can interact to deliver real benefits for learners and teachers.
Nigel Pike
Assessment Strategy Manager
Nigel Pike is MBA-qualified and highly experienced in assessment, having over 20 years of experience in English language assessment. He was Director of Assessment at Cambridge Assessment English for 6 years, directing the development, production and delivery of all Cambridge English examinations, from Young Learners to IELTS and all teaching qualifications.
Nigel has extensive experience with national and local ministries of education around the
globe, delivering consultancy, customised examinations and large-scale administration,
developing language policy for governments, and working successfully across a variety
of cultures and contexts.
The fact that he is highly analytical, as well as qualified with soft skills for motivating and organising a high-achieving department, contributes to the development of key interpersonal relationships with both external and internal stakeholders.
Professor David Coniam
Head of Research & Validation
Professor David Coniam is Head of Research at LANGUAGECERT. He has been working and researching in English language teaching, education and assessment for almost 50 years. His main publication and research interests are in language assessment, language teaching methodology and academic writing and publishing.
His qualifications include Ph.D. in Applied English Linguistics, University of Birmingham, UK, in 1995. David is also a member of the American Educational Research Association
Fraser Cargill
Director, Global Partnerships & Recognition
Fraser Cargill has more than 25 years of management experience in education across Europe, Asia and Australia. His expertise is in educational outcomes audits, high-stakes language assessments, stakeholder engagement, strategic planning and transnational education.
Fraser has worked as an international education consultant with numerous university, government and corporate clients, including Austrade, The British Council, Pearson, and University of Liverpool amongst others. He also spent more than a decade at Pearson, in a number of senior executive roles, including VP roles for VUE and for Pearson Language Tests (PTE), contributing to the development and launch of the PTE Academic and Government Relations – focusing on relationships with multi-lateral donors and Ministries of Education in APAC.
Fraser is an Al Gore trained Climate Reality Leader and serves on the Board of the Climate Action Network for International Educators (CANIE). He also advises a number of EdTech start-ups.
He holds BA Hons, University of Kent; PGCE, University of Leeds, MBA, University of Southern Queensland.
Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD).
Dr Yiannis Papargyris
Director, Language Assessment Development & Quality
Dr Papargyris is an education management professional with over 15 years of experience in the fields of (Transnational) English-medium Higher Education, Qualification Development & Educational Assessment. At LANGUAGECERT, he is directly responsible for all the key aspects of qualification development.
He has worked directly with several Awarding Organizations (Gatehouse Awards, City & Guilds) and with national authorities (Quality and Qualifications Ireland, Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research) thus gaining valuable experience in the field. Dr. Papargyris is currently a full member of the Chartered Institute of Educational Assessors and is a Chartered Educational Assessor.
Dr. Papargyris holds a PhD from The University of Birmingham. He was also awarded an Honorary Lectureship from the same university in 2003.
Liam Vint
Director of Product Portfolio and Marketing
Liam Vint has over three decades of experience in the language education and certification industry, specializing in strategic portfolio management, business development, and marketing. Currently serving as the Director of Product Portfolio and Marketing for Languages at PeopleCert, Liam oversees global portfolio strategy, leading multidisciplinary teams to achieve strategic objectives in collaboration with Sales, Technology, and Operations divisions.
His expertise was honed during a distinguished 20-year tenure at Cambridge Assessment English, where he led global growth strategies, managed regional operations, and served as President of the Cambridge Assessment Japan Foundation. Liam's foundation in language education began with the British Council, where he held teaching and managerial roles across Europe.
He holds a Master of Arts from the University of Cambridge and an MA in Teaching English as a Foreign Language from the University of Reading.
A visionary in the field, Liam has consistently driven innovation and growth, ensuring that language education and certification meet the diverse needs of learners worldwide.